Archive - November 2011

Blazers Edge breaks down every teams salary cap position. Oklahoma City is another team that will probably not make many (if any) major moves during this free agent period simply because their roster is basically set. After they sign 1st round pick Reggie Jackson (does this mean that the Reggie candy bar will be making a comeback?), the Thunder will be at 15 players. They could waive Robert Vaden and his non-guaranteed contract to either sign restricted free agent Daequan Cook or another free agent, but I don’t expect any blockbuster signings by the Thunder.

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Finally, we’re about to see some basketball. As of 9 AM CST on Thursday Morning, all NBA players may host voluntary workouts in their buildings. However, training camp will not open until December 9th. Teams will be allowed to provide their strength and conditioning coaches as well as a trainer and their staff, but no coaches or front office may observe drills. Read MoreWe invite you to follow Thunder Digest on Twitter and like Thunder Digest on Facebook. Don't forget to subsribe on Youtube! Our Podcast is on iTunes and on Stitcher. We also have a Thunder Digest Instagram account if you love fun Thunder photography!

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With the lockout there was plenty of free time for the players. They considered themselves unemployed since they couldn’t technically do their jobs. So, they went pro-bono in some ways. Some players flew across the country and played in multiple charity events. Some went back to school and worked toward their degrees. Read More

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What if Oklahoma City won a title or two in the post lock out era? Yes, the Thunder have some built-in advantages. A publicly-funded $120 million renovation to their arena — along with the construction of a practice facility — provided the franchise with a solid foundation in Oklahoma City. Voters even approved a one-cent sales tax increase. General manager Sam Presti has drafted and managed the roster impeccably. Read More

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At approximately 3 a.m. early Saturday morning, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com sent out the tweet for which we have all been waiting. Berger was first to report the story after the announcement was made of a joint press conference. NBA Commissioner David Stern said at the press conference that the plan was to play the first games of a shortened 66-game season on December 25th. The originally scheduled triple header of Mavericks-Heat, Lakers-Bulls and Knicks-Celtics will likely remain the Christmas Day lineup. It is being reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports that some veteran players may vote against the proposed agreement, but it will pass regardless. Judging by the reaction of the players on twitter, including this gem by Kevin Durant, I’d say Mr. Wojnarowski is correct. The deal must still be officially approved by the owners and players, but assuming the vote goes smoothly, the NBA timeline will look something like this: Saturday, Nov. 26th – Friday, Dec. 9th: The players’ union no longer exists, so the players must reform their union before the vote can take place. Reforming the union should not take long at all because the union disclaimed its interest rather than the alternative (decertification). The players must withdraw their antitrust lawsuits, show proof that a majority of the players support reforming the union, file some paperwork, and BOOM the union is back.